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Archived: AMERICAN DYNASTY: A POLITICAL BOARD GAME

If you believe Politicians should be judged not by the content of their character, but by the prestige of their family name, this is the game for you!

After a frantic year of design and playtesting, weirdly rooting for Jeb! AND Hillary, and hoping desperately for a bloody primary battle/mud-slinging contest, American Dynasty is ready!

The Vision:

I set out to make a game that was simultaneously social commentary, scathing and uproarious satire, and an entertaining emulation of the Electoral College. It smashes 120 years of legislation, scandals, and political events into an anachronistic 5 term face off between the four great American Political families.

Stretch Goals:

Vote in our stretch goal polls! This is a democracy, after all. We’ll update the current polls daily, and the leading goal on the day we meet our next benchmark (21k, 30k, 40k, 50k) will be part of the game!

Floodable Florida – I’m not a scientist, but the Puzzle Piece for Florida will get a flooded hell-scape painted on the back of it, just in case Climate Change is real.

Donald Trump Pack – The man. The hair. The (proposed) policies… You’ll get more Trump than you could ever want in this pack of 5 Media cards and 4 Bills. (Kickstarter Exclusive)

Media Frenzy! – More art for the center puzzle piece will show what happens when the media gets a little too excited about an upcoming election.

Alternate States – North Carolina, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania will be alternate states that you can swing around in.

National Conventions Pack – Before you can buy the presidency, you have to duke it out Left on Left, and Right on Right on the Convention Floor Mat. (Kickstarter Exclusive)

Custom Molded Dice – Having all dice numbered 0-5 will make it easier for players to quickly add dice and bonuses together without statistically altering the game!

Bernie Sanders Pack – Some old guy (apparently the heir to the KFC fortune) decides that he can just jump into a presidential race, already dominated by both a Clinton and a Bush.

The Game:

American Dynasty is an engine building game in which each player is competing for the same shared engine. Campaign your family’s members in 5 key swing states. Each State has a voting Bloc (Cops, College Students, Black People, etc.) that lean to the left or the right, and value different traits (Stylish, Religious, etc.).

By catering to these Blocs as well as placing influence in states, you can increase your chances of being elected into office in that state. In order to increase the value of winning a state, your elected family members can pass bills and get into bed with a host of special interest groups.

I was able to mathematically balance the game using simple ai scripts and spreadsheet analysis to ensure no family had an advantage overall, but each family does well using different strategies and capitalizing on different play styles.

The Roosevelts don’t have term limits and make great military presidents.

The Kennedys rely on their financial advantages and style to control the media.

The Bushes are masters of pandering to special interest groups, but don’t appeal to female voters, unlike . . .

The Clintons, who use their powerful women and expansive public influence to their advantage.